Guilty
by grand admiral chelli
Summary: OOTP AU – What if Malfoy had influenced the Wizengamot’s decision, and had therefore caused them to pronounce Harry guilty of all charges? See what life would be like if Harry had actually been expelled before his fifth year.


Disclaimer: I own nothing.  
  
Summary: OOTP AU - What if Malfoy had influenced the Wizengamot's decision, and had therefore caused them to pronounce Harry guilty of all charges? See what life would be like if Harry had actually been expelled before his fifth year.  
  
Chapter One - Guilty  
  
Note: This portion is directly copied from OOTP.  
  
"Those in favour of clearing the witness of all charges?" said Madam Bones's booming voice.  
  
Harry's head jerked upwards. There were hands in the air, many of them . . . more than half! Breathing very fast, he tried to count, but before he could finish, Madam Bones had said, "And those in favour of conviction?"  
  
Fudge raised his hand, as did half a dozen others, including the witch on his right and the heavily mustached wizard and the frizzy-haired witch in the second row.  
  
Fudge glanced around at them all, looking as though there was something large stuck in his throat, then lowered his own hand. He took two deep breaths and said, in a voice distorted by suppressed rage, "Very well, very well-"  
  
-AU begins here-  
  
Fudge was interrupted by a loud knock on the door to the courtroom. Looking very annoyed, yet thankful, at being interrupted, Fudge waited a few seconds, before snapping, "Weasley, get the door."  
  
Percy Weasley, embarrassed by his boss's tone, shuffled to the door, and opened it a crack. He immediately blanched upon seeing the knocker, and turned slowly to face the Wizengamot. "Lucius Malfoy, Minister, requesting permission to speak against Mister Potter."  
  
The majority of witches and wizards started protesting immediately. Although Mister Malfoy was a respected member of the Ministry, he was not a member of the Wizengamot, and therefore shouldn't be taking part in a trial. Minister Fudge, on the other hand, was elated at the prospect of getting some dirt on the famous Harry Potter.  
  
"Of course, of course. Come in Lucius, and speak your piece! What has Mister Potter been up to?"  
  
Percy turned back to the doorway. "Please come in. . ." Lucius Malfoy, resplendent in robes of black lined with silver, strode past Percy before he'd even finished his sentence, effectively pushing the wayward Weasley aside. Percy humphed, closed the door, and scurried back to his seat beside the Minister.  
  
Malfoy smiled maliciously. "My dear members of the Wizengamot, and of course, the esteemed Minister Fudge, I've come to present some evidence against Mister Potter that I hope you will consider."  
  
A tall, beautiful, black-haired witch leapt to her feet. 'Minister Fudge, I must protest! The Wizengamot has already voted! Potter is innocent! We can't re-vote, it isn't done!"  
  
Dumbledore frowned at Fudge. "Indeed, Cornelius, that is the law. After all, you wrote it, you should know."  
  
Fudge glared. "I am the Minister, Dumbledore, and if I say we re-vote, then we re-vote!"  
  
The black-haired witch put her hands on her waist. "Minister Fudge, I must protest-"  
  
"Silence!" Madam Bones declared. "Mister Malfoy will present his evidence, at which time we shall re-vote." The black-haired witch opened her mouth to protest, then thought better of it, and collapsed back into her seat with a huff. Malfoy smirked.  
  
"Well, thank you, Madam Bones. And you too, Miss Price, for your attempts to see the former law upheld." Malfoy was clearly trying to make peace with black-haired witch, although by her glare, he didn't seem to be making progress. He cleared his throat. "As I was saying, I have evidence that Mister Potter is indeed guilty of breaking the statue of secrecy."  
  
Fudge rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "Yes? Well, what is it, Lucius? Speak up!" Malfoy smiled.  
  
"Mrs. Arabella Figg is lying. There were no Dementors at Privet Drive."  
  
Dumbledore frowned. "Lucius, I think the Wizengamot all agree that there were, in fact, Dementors at Privet Drive. Mrs. Figg was not lying."  
  
Malfoy smirked so evilly that Harry involuntarily shuddered. "That would be true . . . if Arabella Figg had even been at Privet Drive during the Dementor attack." Harry gaped at Lucius in astonishment. What was he playing at? Malfoy smiled. "I have evidence that Mrs. Figg was, in fact, in Mexico on vacation at the time."  
  
Harry couldn't stay silent any longer. "What are you talking about? I saw her-"  
  
"Telling lies will get you nowhere, Potter." Malfoy interjected smoothly. "I call Arabella Figg to the floor, as well as her neighbor, Miss Felicity Simmons." Dumbledore opened his mouth to object, but Fudge cut him off.  
  
"Of course, Lucius, feel free. The Ministry, of course, believes that no guilty man should walk innocent. Continue."  
  
Lucius smiled. "Thank you, Minister."  
  
The courtroom door opened a few seconds later, and in walked Arabella Figg and a short, blond woman Harry guessed must be Felicity Simmons. Both had a glazed look in their eyes, and seemed to be quite frightened of the Wizengamot. Then again, Felicity Simmons must be a muggle, Harry realized, so it was only natural she'd be frightened of this congregation of magical folk.  
  
Lucius cleared his throat, and beckoned his two witnesses' forward. "Arabella Figg, you previously claimed that you viewed Dementors at Privet Drive attacking Mister Harry J. Potter. Is this correct?"  
  
Arabella, in a calm voice, replied, "Yes."  
  
"But I have an eye witness that claims you had not been in Privet Drive for a week."  
  
"That is correct. I had been on vacation in Mexico. I returned the day after the incident occurred." Harry could hardly believe his ears. What was going on?  
  
"So you admit that you couldn't possibly have seen a Dementor, because-"  
  
"I object. Malfoy is leading the witness on." Dumbledore interrupted.  
  
Fudge glared. "Continue, Malfoy." Malfoy smiled.  
  
"Thank you Minister. As I was saying, you couldn't possibly have seen a Dementor, because you were in Mexico at the time, correct?"  
  
Arabella smiled. "Indeed."  
  
As Malfoy continued extracting lies from his two witnesses', Harry sat in a state of shock. Why on earth was Mrs. Figg, a woman he'd known all his life, going along with Malfoy's story? Additionally, Harry had heard his Aunt complain about how boring and law-abiding that "Damn Simmons" was. Why would she lie now?  
  
Harry glanced over at Dumbledore, who wasn't even bothering to interrupt anymore. It seemed that he, too, had realized that the Ministry was completely in Malfoy's pocket. The older man wore an expression of disinterest, but Harry detected another emotion in the man's blue eyes. Was it disappointment? Perhaps disappointment in the Ministry, because they could not tell a lie from the truth?  
  
Angry murmurings from the crowd broke Harry's train of thought. He looked up in alarm. Judging by Malfoy's evil smirk, he'd succeeded in convincing the majority of the courtroom of Harry's guilt. At this point, Harry could only conclude that Malfoy was somehow controlling Mrs. Figg and Miss Simmons. Perhaps the Imperius curse?  
  
Madam Bones cleared her throat. "Well, with this new evidence, it is time to re-vote. Those in favour of clearing the witness of all charges?" Harry looked up slowly. What he saw made his heart stop.  
  
There were only three hands in the air. The black-haired witch's, Madam Bones's, and a curly-haired wizard's on the right. Three hands. Harry realized that he wasn't panicking - he assumed it was because his brain hadn't processed the fact that he was about to be expelled, and have his wand snapped.  
  
Madam Bones sighed, and said, "And those in favour of conviction?" Everyone's hands flew upwards. Malfoy let out a triumphant smirk. Harry did not doubt that Malfoy would be getting quite a hefty reward from Voldemort in the near future. After all, it wasn't every day you managed to get the Boy-Who-Lived expelled.  
  
Madam Bones didn't even bother to recheck the vote tally. In a slightly disappointed voice, she declared. "Very well. Harry James Potter is hereby. . . guilty of all charges." Somehow, finally hearing this aloud triggered something in Harry's brain, and the shock finally set in.  
  
Fudge smirked evilly, looking scarily identical to Malfoy. "Aurors, kindly confiscate Mister Potter's wand. Mister Potter, you are now expelled from both Hogwarts, and the Wizarding world. Any attempts to contact our world will result in . . ."  
  
As Fudge droned on, and the Aurors approached from the doorway, Harry noticed that, for the first time that day, Dumbledore looked angry. Really angry. Harry watched as Dumbledore surreptitiously drew his wand. Dumbledore leaned close to Harry, avoiding eye contact.  
  
"Get down. Now." Harry immediately threw himself to the floor. As Harry fell, Dumbledore flicked his wand. There was a bright blue flash, and when Harry looked up, everyone, save Dumbledore and himself, where slumped down on the floor unconscious. Harry stood up quickly, looking at Dumbledore in awe.  
  
"Sir, what-"  
  
Dumbledore, for the first time, looked Harry directly in the eyes. Harry vaguely noticed that he felt something akin to hatred when he looked Dumbledore in the eye, but was too confused to care.  
  
"Harry," Dumbledore said quickly, "Listen to me now. Thanks to Fudge's inability to see the truth, you are now expelled from Hogwarts. This means your wand will be snapped in two, and you will be sent back to the muggle world. This cannot happen."  
  
Harry stared in shock. "Sir?"  
  
Dumbledore sighed. "There is nothing more important than you continuing your magical studies, Harry, and you cannot do that without a wand, stuck at Privet Drive for the rest of your life."  
  
"But I've been expelled. . ."  
  
Dumbledore looked older than Harry had ever seen him. "If the Ministry refuses to accept the truth, then they will have to pay the consequences." He removed his hat, tapped it, and muttered, "Portus". The object glowed brightly for a second, and then faded back to its original colour. "This is a portkey. It will take you to Grimmauld Place."  
  
"But why-"  
  
"You MUST learn magic, Harry, and you MUST learn to defend yourself. You will therefore stay at Grimmauld Place until I can convince Fudge of the truth."  
  
"How long-"  
  
"Anywhere from a week to a year, I'm afraid. Until then, you must stay put, and learn magic. The underage rule will not apply to you, since you are now expelled."  
  
A very important fact dawned on Harry. "But sir, if I do go to Grimmauld Place, and don't surrender my wand, then I'll be a . . ."  
  
Dumbledore sighed. "An outlaw, Harry, that is correct. Believe me, if there was another choice, I'd greatly take it. But there isn't, so we'll have to make do."  
  
Harry was concerned. "What about you, sir? Surely the Ministry won't appreciate that you helped me escape."  
  
Dumbledore smiled slightly. "One reason Cornelius wanted you out of the way was because he is convinced you are a powerful wizard. It will not take much convincing to assure the Ministry that you stunned these people, created a portkey, and escaped. I will revive the court once you are gone, and will pretend to have been stunned as well. No one will question this, hopefully."  
  
Harry nodded, now understanding the need for haste. He made sure his wand was in his pocket, grabbed the portkey, and disappeared with a pop.  
  
Albus sighed as he saw his young pupil disappear. And now for the fun part, Albus thought gloomily. He flicked his wand, reviving the court. As soon as Cornelius recovered, he stalked down to Dumbledore, and wildly demanded answers. Dumbledore sighed. Nothing was ever easy.  
  
-Grimmauld Place-  
  
Feeling distinctly seasick, Harry collapsed on the floor of the kitchen with a muffled, "oomph." He was immediately helped to his feet by Lupin, who was in the kitchen at the time. Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and the twins skidded into the kitchen moments later, followed by Molly Weasley and Sirius. They immediately started questioning him. Mrs. Weasley eventually managed to quiet them, and she looked directly at Harry. Harry sighed, close to tears, the implications finally dawning on him.  
  
"I'm guilty." Harry muttered. Everyone, save Hermione, gasped, and looked at each other uneasily. Hermione, however, wasn't satisfied.  
  
"What do you mean, you're guilty? You used magic in self-defense! They can't expel you for that."  
  
Harry sighed. "Malfoy." No more explanation was necessary. Ron's eyes narrowed in hatred at the mention of the senior Malfoy.  
  
"But, if you were expelled, why are you here? Why do you have your wand? And where's Mr. Weasley?" Hermione stammered anxiously.  
  
Harry slowly recounted his tale. When he was finished, everyone in the room was silent. Finally, Ron broke the silence. "So you're expelled."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"And Dumbledore wanted you to keep learning magic."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"So now you're an underage outlaw."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
Inexplicably, Ron grinned. "That is SO COOL!" Hermione looked at Ron as if he were mad. "Oh, come on! Harry gets to stay at Grimmauld Place! And who comes through Grimmauld Place every single day? Aurors! Illegal traders!"  
  
Hermione looked skeptical, but Sirius, who hadn't yet spoken, now looked oddly triumphant. "Plus, you'll get stay here with me! We'll have so much fun!"  
  
Harry then realized he'd possibly get to spend the next year entirely with his godfather. Suddenly, becoming an outlaw looked a heck of a lot better. He'd get to learn from his godfather, as well as from the wide variety of people who came and went every day!  
  
Hermione still seemed sad. "Yes, perhaps Harry will spend more time with Sirius, but we won't see him when we go to Hogwarts in two weeks." This definitely put a damper on Harry's mood.  
  
Ron smiled sadly. "Yeah. . . but at least Harry isn't stuck back at Privet Drive, right?"  
  
Ginny smiled. "Absolutely! We'll just have to make the best of the next two weeks, won't we?"  
  
The kitchen erupted in cheers. Excited, Hermione exclaimed, "Wonderful! Two whole weeks to study for the O.W.L's! There's a wonderful new charm I'm excited about learning the history and theory behind. It's so exciting! It was invented by . . . hey! Where'd everybody go?" 


End file.
